Department Store Living
by Airi4264
Summary: Bella becomes homeless and has no place to go. She has no choice but to make the department store bathroom her new home. So what happens when employee Edward Cullen catches Bella?
1. Attention Shoppers

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Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight series, but I do own a bongo drum. )

A/N: Okay the poll winner is….You'll have to find out by reading. The other two will still be written but votes decides what order. So I'll put up a new poll for you all to pick the next story to go up. I have absolutely no idea how I got these ideas. They just popped into my head awhile ago and I wanted to put them on paper, well online.

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Chapter One: Attention Shoppers

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Bella Swan

I watched in slow motion as my left foot came crashing to the ground and shut my eyes as it hit the floor. When I actually did hear the small tap as my foot hit the pavement and the automatic doors slid open.

I glanced back behind me at the night sky and looked at the smoky clouds. It looked as if the clouds would rip open and thrust lightning down on us. It was late; the store would be closing soon.

I stood motionless in front of the unmoving open doors and stared vacantly into the crowded department store. _Could I really do this?_ I questioned myself doubtfully.

No, there was no going back. I had made the decision to do this as a last resort, and there were no other choices. I had no where else to go; no where else to run. And to top them all off, no where else to _live._

I took my first step into department store and took a deep breath and sighed at the small accomplishment. The doors closed behind me with a slight protesting screech. I looked around for a moment, unsure of what to do.

I turned towards the carts then-- by instinct-- and wrapped my fingers around the plastic handles of the one closest to me. My fingers tightened around it as I yanked it out of it's place in line with all of the other carts.

The wheels squeaked against the linoleum floor as I turned the cart to face a different direction. I looked out in front of me with the twenty three lanes of check-out stands and the twenty five isles of food, clothes, camping and sports equipment, bed spreads and pillows, baby items, and fabrics. So many things, but only one that I was looking for.

I glanced around at all the bright and colorful signs and finally the female stick figure caught my attention. I looked in the direction of which the white, bold arrow was pointing, and followed it through the outlet.

I bumped into a few people in my haste to escape; how I hated crowds. But I felt that if I didn't hurry my plan would be demolished and would crumble beneath my feet.

I broke into a sprint as the sign came into view. I was forgetting that people were watching, so I slowed and the wheels squeaked yet again at the change in speed. I came to an abrupt halt outside of the swinging door. I peered up at it in hope.

I paused and listened. I could hear the rushing of water out of the expected silver faucet. When the sound of the water silenced I could hear voices. Voices that were so happy and they were…laughing?

I couldn't remember the last time that I laughed, but my situation was anything but funny. The door creaked as it swung open to introduce to me to three middle aged women giggling furiously.

I frowned at their easy-going lives and laid back laughter. I hesitated another fraction of a moment to make sure not even the slightest of noises came from the bathroom.

I constricted my grip on the cart handle and wheeled it around the corner. I found a good place to park it and pried my fingers off of the cart. I spun on my heel and dragged myself back towards the proof of my own miserable mistake.

My fingers slipped on the slightly damp metal knob. I pulled back my arm then, pulling the door with it and took my first step into the washroom. My shoes hit the tiled floor and my nose was assaulted with the stench of disinfectant.

I leaned into the cream colored counter and stared into the mirror, not really looking at myself. What was I doing here? How could I have let this happen? I'd never felt so pathetic.

But what other choice did I have? I had nothing. I winced then as a sharp pain ripped through me. I was literally starving; I hadn't eaten in so long.

I turned the un-matching brass knob and let the cool water fill my hands. I rubbed at my face until I felt that it was clean of any sweat. And then I heard it. The sound that would either ensure my safety for the night or send me back to the dangers of the lonely street.

_Attention all shoppers, attention all shoppers. The store is closing, please make you way to the cash registers. _

The voice over the intercom echoed throughout the room as I shut my eyes trying to block it and everything else out. I could hear the squeaking of the tires and the absent chatting of the shoppers passing by the bathroom towards the registers.

Eventually I had taken my comfortable spot on the floor and watched through the small crack between the door and the floor. Soon all the trudging feet began to lessen and it was becoming more silent.

But then I saw the polished uniform boots of an employee just outside. My breath caught in my throat and my eyes were wide with fear. _This is it_. I wiped back the tears that were pooling in my eyes and I choked back the sobs that so desperately wanted out.

The metal grinding upon more metal sound as the stranger slid the key into the door that I had absently locked. And then the click of the locking turning. I had no time left.

I pulled myself off of the floor and scrambled to the farthest stall of the bathroom. I slid the lock in place and stood on the toilet seat. I had to place my hand over my mouth because my breathing was becoming too anxious.

The door swung open then with the hinges protesting and then a soft thump when it hit back into place. The large shoes slapped against the floor but paused at the many sinks.

I heard the scraping of paper towels against the floor and then the slapping continued. The first stall door swinging open and smacking against the wall, then the second.

I was in the fifth and I would have to do something soon. The third, and he paused walking into it and glancing around. He turned on his heel and headed back to the two remaining stalls. One which a very frightened Bella Swan was inhabiting.

The sound that was becoming familiar to me continued as the fourth stall door slammed against the wall. And now I had to do something or the streets would yet again be my home, and I couldn't go back.

His foot hit the door of my stall and it shook around but didn't undo the lock. I breathed a sigh of relief from under my hand. "What the hell?"" A male voice muttered under his breath. A voice that was so beautiful it was surreal. It was like velvet.

He kicked it again and I watched as it shook on it's hinges. The tears were back and I didn't care about suppressing them. I scrambled to my feet then and slid myself under the stall to the previous stall.

There was a metal bar there and I pulled myself onto it and hid behind the halfway open door. He kicked the door one last time and I winced at the sound as it echoed around me.

I heard the creak as the door finally opened. He stepped in and looked around. He turned around full circle and looked under the stall into the one that I was occupying. I shut my eyes as my foot began slipping on the metal bar.

He let out a sigh and began muttering to himself things that were too low and fast for me to hear. His shoes yet again slapped the floor as he made his way out of my newest sanctuary.

I hopped off of the bar slipping on the damp floor and hit the ground with a hard thud. "Shit." I muttered and got up brushing myself off. I slowly moved the door out of the way and rushed to the entrance to the bathroom turning the lock in my fingers.

I slid to the floor resting my head on the cool tiled wall and closed my eyes--trying to calm myself. I had been so frightened, so unsure, so brutally anxious. I was trembling and I felt frozen to the bone even though my forehead was damp with sweat.

I concentrated on my hands, trying to calm them enough to stop shaking. It was a wasted effort. I set myself down in the small cranny under the sink and let the breath that I had continued to hold out.

I looked down at my cheap wristwatch and set the alarm. My head hit the wall and I felt water on my face. The sink had a leak, and it continued to drip on my eye for the rest of the night.

The silence of the bathroom was so loud and unnerving. It was horrible, but soon I was tired enough for my eyes to drift shut and my ragged breathing to deepen.

_Beep, beep, beep, beep. _

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**I groaned instinctly and turned over only for my face to meet the rock hard wall. "Ow!" I said while placing my hand at the back of my head and wincing as I felt a bump forming._

I pressed the side button on my watch to stop the beeping. I rolled back over to the opposite side where I could reach the sink counter. I wrapped my fingers around the counter and tightened my grip hoisting myself off of the floor.

My image in the mirror looking back at me was horrible. My eyes were still red from crying and my face was splotchy. I had bags under my eyes and I was miserably pale. Also thin, but no amount of food would ever fill me.

I splashed cold water on my face to make myself even the slightest bit decent and I dried off with a paper towel. Yes I was a wreck, but what choice did I really have? I didn't have enough to buy myself a decent meal.

I turned the lock that I was growing used to and reached for the knob. I took a tight grip on it but it remained closed. I looked under the door crack and noticed that the outlet had just opened.

I twisted the knob and pulled the door open. I took a step out of the washroom and let the door fall shut behind me. I took a deep breath and held it. I tried to get my priorities in order and learn what I would have to do first.

I knew that I needed to eat, that was the most important. But besides that I would yet again have to hide out in the bathroom and go through the same thing I had endured the night before. I could do it.

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Okay so the first chapter is suppose to be confusing; its just suppose to be the base story to give you some idea of what's going on. The details will be explained in the next few chapters. I don't think I need a beta yet but if any of you all think I do just let me know and I'll fix it. Tell me what you think and review please, I would like your inputs. If you like the idea I mean. Also on one of my other stories I never thanked flamingo1325 for being a great beta and giving me lots of needed criticism.

Review! Thank you.

Airi


	2. Clean Up in Isle Three

**Disclaimer: I do not own the series, but I do own a dream catcher.**

**A/N: I'm back; what a shock. It's been a long ass time but I personally think I've grown as a writer during the time apart from my stories. I really missed hearing from everyone and have tons of PM'S asking where I've been. Thanks for all of your support. So I didn't die! I've just taken a long vacation. So in other news the poll that I had forever ago finally has a definite answer and will be posted soon. I hope to start my account back up and hear from you all again. One last thing my other two stories are not over, they are on hold until I rewrite them. And knowing me if I'm determined it won't take too long…or maybe a few years... Okay, I'm done, tell me what you think! **

_**Chapter Two: Clean Up in Isle Three**_

The vast shopping center was spread out before me in a disarray of colors and signs. Some of the shoppers were absently looking at boxes and reading descriptions while others were standing idly by; only browsing.

I tried to think hard of what kind of food I even liked, but at this moment it was obvious that anything would have tasted good; if only to fill a hollow stomach.

I looked around and glanced at the signs hanging above each isle. Reading what each contained. Finally, isle thirteen, Pop tarts. Finding what I guessed I had been looking for all along I made my way toward the bright yellow thirteen.

In my haste towards anything edible I had bumped into a shopper. I turned towards her to apologize and instantly recognized the face of perfection framed in the most beautiful blonde hair. Instantly I was brought back to my time on the streets, a beggar.

**(Italics are flashbacks!)**

"_What the hell do you think you're doing? Stop begging for my damn money, because you're not worth it. I have more important things to be doing with my money then to be just handing out to pathetic people like you." An angry voice snarled not inches from my face. I was vulnerable and willing to swallow my pride and ask for the help of others. A great mistake._

"_Rosalie what the hell is your problem? She's a person too, and do you talk to other people like that?" A large brawny man questioned his companion. "She's hardly a person, too pathetic to even belong on the same level of intelligence. It's her own fault for getting in a situation like this anyway." The beautiful blonde complained to the brawny young man. _

"_Rosalie, don't try to even pretend you know her 'situation' unless you've been in the same position. When did you become such a selfish bitch?" The brawny boy questioned this so called 'Rosalie'." "Emmett! How could you say that?" The blonde beauty whined and jutted out a perfectly glossed lower lip._

_Emmett leaned down to my level at that moment then, ignoring Rosalie's statement and placed his hand over mine and griping onto it. This closeness with a stranger startled me and I flinched away. _

_I was like a dog who had been beaten, unable to trust others. He flipped my hand over and placed a bill within it. I looked between him and the bill, one hundred dollars were in my hand for the first time in months._

_He leaned his head down to my ear then and with a smile in his voice whispered, "take care of yourself." The two strangers were gone within that moment; so fleeting. _

I was always grateful to that kind stranger, and I had made it a goal to one day find him and repay him. Would this be my chance now? But what could I possibly do for him now? I'm not much better of than I was when he and the picture of perfection came into my life and left like a flash.

I stared at her unmoving as she stared back. She looked away and passed me, bumping my shoulder on the way. I hadn't realized that I had been holding my breath until it came out in a hiss from my teeth.

My chance would not be today. I shut my eyes and tried to relax as I glanced around to make sure no one was looking. After the coast was clear I slid the Pop tart box under my torn jacket and snuck of into the back corner of the store.

I tore the box open like a small child with Christmas presents. I tore the first plastic package and ripped out a Pop tart. It was strawberry. I popped it into my mouth and swallowed it whole; the Pop tart choking me as I tried to fit it all down in one gulp.

I instantly moved on to the next package after finishing the first and was done with the box in less than ten minutes. My throat felt chalky from the Pop tarts so I looked up to find the sign with milk.

The milk was where I had always remembered. The farthest left side of the store on the shelves of the refrigerated dairy products. I snatched a carton and chugged it down behind a display.

"Bella? Bella Swan is that you? I haven't seen you since high school!" An overly friendly voice bellowed from behind me. I turned my face a fraction of an inch and caught a glimpse of the person calling out to me.

The blonde spikes still in place, the big blue eyes. The young face finally matured, but the golden retriever personality never faded. Mike Newton. After all these years Mike worked in a supermarket. Before I would have laughed and said that's where he probably belonged, but now even _Mike Newton_ was better off than me.

Why the hell did he have to recognize me though? I was absolutely sure I left Bella Swan behind at the abandoned wedding alter, along with a Mister Jacob Black. I left it behind, yet it was still chasing after me. I had always known it was impossible to leave an identity behind and disappear.

"Yes, it's me." I murmured through my gritted teeth. "Wow, I just cant believe it after all this time." Mike announced walking towards me with his arms awaiting a hug he would not receive. He stopped about a foot behind me, for I had not turned around yet to face him.

I didn't speak so he continued. "Turn around and let me see you at least." He said in a softer voice as if he finally realized that people were looking at us. I shut my eyes and huffed out a sigh. I scrunched up my face knowing this would end badly.

I spun on my heel quickly and looked Mike Newton dead in the eye. He looked my over once, twice, and the grin on his face began to fade. "Bella, my god what happened!?" Mike exclaimed after he was able to finally speak.

"Car accident." I mumbled looking at the ground; _that _was my lame excuse. "Oh, wow well you better take better care of yourself and get well." He said as his voice was becoming distant; obviously getting distracted by my horrible appearance.

"Well I have to get back to work, here's my number. Maybe we can catch up sometime when you're feeling better." He said while handing my a scrap of paper with a few numbers scrawled on it. I didn't answer and he began to walk away throwing an absent wave goodbye over his shoulder.

I sighed in relief as the second startling event of my day had come to an end. I was fed and somewhat rested. I now had the options of exploring the place a bit more or using the restroom-- which I realized at that moment was a bit more urgent than I had expected.

After coming out of the bathroom door the outlet was already less crowded and the sun outside was close to setting. My first day in my new 'home' had ended with much to think about. After awhile of idly standing around the announcement for me to go into hideout sounded over the intercom.

_Attention all shoppers, attention all shoppers. The store is closing, please make your way over to the cash registers._

I sighed while heading back to the female stick figure and turning the lock in my hand. I got into the last stall just as I had last time. I knew what to expect so I wouldn't be as frightened.

It was around an hour before I heard the key turn in the lock and the familiar slap of the shoes as they hit the floor. The slapping feet tapped against the floor for a moment and moved on.

Instantly the door of the first stall made a smacking sound as it hit the wall from the impact of the kick it most likely suffered from. The second shook a bit and did the same as the first. The slapping continued onto the third stall and continued on in the same pattern.

The stranger was standing outside my stall as I peered out at him from the crack between the wall and the door. He kicked the door and it shook the hinges. He sighed and I began to scramble to the fourth stall.

He kicked the door again as it shook and just as I was sliding under the wall my jacket got caught on the toiletpaper dispenser. I tugged and pulled but there was no use. I was going to get caught and my plan would be ruined. My means of living would be discovered and destroyed.

The door was kick another time and began to squeak as the hinges were loosening. The tears came then and began to stream down my face, I was helpless and pathetic; stuck in another stupid situation.

The stall door was kicked again and slowly the worn out door creaked and slid open. I looked away, unable to look at my pursuer. "Bella Swan?" A beautiful voice asked in astonishment.

I looked up then at another familiar face, completely unchanged. In the small bit of light from the emergency light I could see the edges of beautiful bronze hair and emerald green eyes looking down on me. I saw skin so white it was almost lucid. And then I remembered who I was looking at.

**Okay so this chapter explains a little more than the first. Each chapter will begin to open up the story a bit more. Yes Bella was supposed to marry Jacob but this is not a B/J story so don't worry. In the next week or so the rewritten first chapter of Match Maker will be up if you'd like to check it out there's some info. Next Alice will come into the story as part of the past. Please review and tell me if I should continue. Thanks all! (Sorry short chapter!) Love you guys!**


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